Cardiac care information released

A nonprofit organization that collects health data throughout the commonwealth has just released new information on cardiac care at Virginia hospitals.

Richmond-based Virginia Health Information says as many as one out of every six congestive heart failure patients return to the hospital within 30 days.

“Given that heart disease remains the No. 1 cause of death in Virginia as well as the country, patients and their family members can use the VHI website to compare 87 hospitals in the state for mortality and readmission rate ,” Michael Lundberg, the executive director of VHI, said in a statement.

“There is no other state in the country that has such a comprehensive online tool not only for cardiac care but also for outpatient procedures, long-term care, hospital patient satisfaction, health care costs, HMO comparisons and insurance options,” Lundberg said.

The latest data shows that hospital readmission rates after a heart-related procedure is almost double among Medicaid and Medicare patients compared to those who are commercially insured.

Nonetheless, VHI says that rate has been steadily decreasing over the past three years.

To access the report, go to http://www.vhi.org , click on cardiac care, type in your zip code and mile radius, then click show results and compare hospitals.